Railway car door ladder



4 Sheets-Sheet 1 G. P. TORBURN RAILWAY CAR DOOR LADDER Aug. 8, 1950 Filed March 6, 1947 INVENTOR.

Aug. 8, 1950 G. P. TORBURN RAILWAY CAR DOOR LADDER 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 6, 1947 I N V EN TOR. Gwfaafibrbar 2,

Aug. 8, 1950 G, T ORBURN 2,517,8

RAILWAY CAR DOOR LADDER Filed March 6, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 5 & Q m 7 w 4. A Z 7 ,5 .m w 2 ma m w A mw I QZVIFIIZZIII/W W 0 w P W 47%? w w z w 0w Aug. 8, 1950 G. P. TORBURN 2,517,811

RAILWAY CAR DOOR LADDER Filed MarchB, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Aug. 8, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RAILWAY CAR DOOR LADDER Gustav P. Torburn, San Mateo, Calif.

Application March '6, 1947, Serial No. 732,884

3 Claims.

This invention relates to ladders for railway cars and relates particularly to a ladder of the collapsible type adapted for association with a railway freight or refrigerator car part, or with the door thereof to provide a convenient temporary means of access through the doorway to the interior of such cars while loaded over said lading for purposes of inspection or otherwise.

In cars of this type it frequently becomes necessary, when cars are loaded with grain or perishable commodities (such as fruits and vegetables) for inspectors to examine the lading before said car is unloaded. For instance, a grain inspector is required to take samples from various locations and depths for classification of the grain in said car. Similarly consignees of fruit and vegetables, for instance, require temperature readings from various parts of the car before accepting delivery.

Railway cars of this type are built to the largest dimensions possible to come within the established tunnel clearance lines, and if a permanent ladder were attached to a car or door it would increase the car width beyond such clearance lines, or decrease its width, if the clearance lines were respected.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a collapsible ladder for application to a railway freight or refrigerator car door, which ladder may be temporarily extended into the car door opening for utilization in obtaining access to l the interior of the car through said opening above the lading and collapsible out of said car door opening so as not to restrict said door opening in any way. i

It is a further object of the invention to provide such collapsible ladder in association with a car without increasing the overall width of the car.

A further object is to provide means to hold the ladder rungs in horizontal position when extended for use.

A further object is to provide a recess associated with a wall of the door opening, or the door itself, within which recess the ladder is collapsible when not in use. l

Another object is to provide means associated with the doorway threshold, preferably, to support the movable ladder stile when extended for use, and maintain its stability.

A further object is to provide means to maintain the ladder in collapsed position outside of said doorway.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a side elevation of a portion of a railway car showing my collapsible door ladder r 2 applied thereon with the door in open position and the ladder extended.

Figure 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is similar to Figure 2 showing the door in closed position and the ladder collapsed.

Figure 4 is an enlargement of part of Figure 2 showing the ladder in extended position.

Figure 5 is an enlargement of part of Figure 3 showing the ladder in collapsed position.

Figures 6 and '7 show the ladder structure illustrated in Figures 1-5 inclusive applied to a swingable door such as sometimes used on a refrigerator car. 1

Figures 8 and 9 show the latch arrangement for holding the door ladder in collapsed position.

Figures 10, 11 and 12 show a modified structure wherein the non-movable stile is secured to the car body and wherein Figure 10 shows the door ladder in extended position.

Figure 11 shows the door ladder in collapsed position.

Figure 12 shows a latch arrangement for hold 1 ing the door ladder in collapsed position.

Figure 13 shows a car door post modified to provide a recess therein to receive the ladder structure illustrated in Figures 10 and 11.

Referring now to Figures 1 to 5, the car side wall is indicated at I, and in this particular instance the wall is of a railway refrigerator car. The door opening in said wall is indicated at 2, through which opening said car is loaded and unloaded, and the door for closing said opening is shown at 3; it being of the sliding type, although the invention is applicable to doors of the hinged type.

Adjacent the forward vertical edge of the door 3 there is riveted, or otherwise secured thereto, the flange 4 of a vertically disposed substantially Z-shaped section indicated generally at 5. Flange 4 thus is secured flatwise to the outer face of the door, so that the web 6 extends outwardly substantially normal thereto for slightly more than half its width and is then turned at an obtuse angle, as shown more clearly in Figure 5 at 1. Flange 8 is formed at a right angle substantially to portion 1, thereby providing a recess facing said doorway.

To the flange 8 are pivotally secured, as by rivets 9., a plurality (preferably three) of ladder rungs l0, they being spaced apart vertically a distance slightly more than their length so that said rungs It may be folded or jack-knifed to a. vertical position above each other and wholly within the recess formed by flange 8. The outer movable stile ii comprises an angle bar, to one flange of which the offset ends i2 of the rungs iii are pivoted. Ends it are oifset to provide room for the rivet heads 53 forming the pivotal connection when the stile H and rungs it are collapsed behind flange 8.

To stabilize the outer stile H in its extended position (Figure 2) a channel-shaped cleat id is secured to the carside below the door opening and within which the lower end it of outer stile Il may extend and be supported upon the bracket to secured to the car side immediately below said cleat M. This cleat is of considerable width so that some length of the lower portion of movable stile H is thereby held adjacent the side of the car to provide stability for said stile when extended within the door opening for use.

The door, being outside of the car wall, and the cleat It being secured in plane with outer surface of said car wall, obviously the ladder extends at an incline from the door to the wall, but which is not considered too objectionable. When in extended position, as shown in Figures 1 and '2, obviously a trainmain or inspector may climb the ladder and thus reach and be able to crawl into the car above the top of the lading, indicated by the line ii. A sill step is provided at 6?. for convenience in reaching the ladder. Con-- versely, when the ladder is collapsed, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, the door may be moved in. the

usual way without affecting the ladder.

To hold the door ladder in such collapsed posi-- tion there is provided a latch (see Figures 8 and 19') consisting of a rod bent in the form of an angle with both arms l5 and it in the same plane and with a handle arm i'l extending from the end of and at right angles to the plane of arm Iii. A clip I3 is provided to secure arm in to the flange 8 so as to be pivotally mounted thereon. Consequently, when the ladder is collapsed and handle H is turned downwardly to vertical position arm 16 will extend horizontally behind outer stile I! l and hold the same in folded or collapsed position.

It will be noted that the pivotal mounting ii of ladder rungs it to flange 8 is spaced. from the ends of said rungs so that vertical slots is must be provided through the portion l of the web 6 of the fixed stile so that when the ladder is extended for use the portion 43 of the rungs outwardly of pivots 9 will extend within said openings. The upper edges of said openings are in plane with upper edges of the respective rungs H] so as to provide stops for said rungs in preventing same from swinging lower than horizontal position.

In Figures 6 and 7 the ladder structure similar to that described above is shown as applicable to a refrigerator car door of the hinged type. In these views the door 3 is hinged, as at i l, to the car wall I and the ladder structure shown generally at 5 is imbedded in the edge of the car door 3 adjacent the hinge 44 so that when the door is closed the ladder structure is against the door post and protected, but when the door is open the ladder is in position to be extended into the door opening for use, as shown in. Figure '7. In. all respects the ladder structure is similar to that previously described and thus it is not considered necessary to repeat a description of same here.

In the modification shown in Figures 10, 11 and 12 the application of the improved. ladder is made to a railway box car having a standard sliding door, wherein the channel-shaped door post is indicated at 20, to which the side sheathing 2! is secured by rivets 22 which also secure thereto one flange 23 of the Z-shaped door post protecting bar, the web 24 of which bar extends normal to said sheathing 2i, and the other flange of said protecting bar is parallel to flange 23. Outer edge of flange 25 is coincident with vertical edge of door opening 2 so that flange 25, web 24 and the adjacent flange of the door post forms a channel-shaped recess 45 facing the doorway.

The collapsible ladder comprises the outer movable ladder stile 2t and rungs 21, which stile and rungs are identical to stile H and rungs Iii of the formerly described modification, and the flange 25 of protecting bar forms the fixed stile of the ladder. Ladder rungs 21 are pivoted adjacent one of their ends to said flange 25 by countersunk rivets Z8, and when the ladder is extended the portion is of the rungs beyond pivots 28 extend within registering slots 29 and 3?) in web 2d and rear sealing strip 3!. See Figure 10. The functioning Of said slots 29 and 3B is identical with that of slots is. To support and maintain the movable stile 26 in operative position when extended there is provided an opening 32 in the threshold plate 33 of the doorway in which lower end of stile 25 may extend.

Also a gravity latch 34 is shown as swingably attached to door post 2!! by rivet 35 and which may be swung behind the stile 26 when the ladder is folded and nested in behind the flange 25 (see Figure 11) and from behind the stile 26 (see dotted lines. Figure 12) when it is desired to extend the ladder.

Figure 13 illustrates a modified door post 48 shaped to form a recess 50 facing the doorway for reception of the ladder structure just described.

When the ladder of either modification is to be moved from collapsed to operative position, the latch is moved to a position which frees the movable stile, which stile is then swung outwardly and downwardly within the door opening until the ends of the rungs pivoted to the fixed stile engage the upper end of the notches within which they project, when the lower end of the movable stile is inserted in its support and the ladder is then ready for use.

In the modifications, Figures 10, 11 and 13, it will be noted that the ladder is mounted upon a fixed car part, whereas in the modifications, Figures 5, 6 and 7, the ladder is mounted upon the car door. In either application the ladder functions the same.

Also in modifications, Figures 10, 11 and 13, the entire ladder is mounted independently of and behind the door 49 to prevent pilfering and to provide protection for the ladder when collapsed and not in use.

Door strip 3! is provided with a rearward extension having an outwardly turned arcuate surface 31 which cooperates with a clip secured to the rear inner edge of the door when said door is closed to provide a rear sealing strip, thereby preventing entrance of dirt, cinders, etc., into the car through the doorway, which is old in the art.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. The combination with a railway car door hinged along one edge to one side of a doorway in a. wall of a railway car; of a notch in the hinged edge of said door and a ladder comprising a stile fixed in said notch, a movable stile, and rungs having their opposite ends, respectively, pivotally attached to said stiles so that said movable stile and said rungs are extensible within said doorway when the door is open or collapsible to a position outside of said doorway.

2. In a railway car having a wall, a doorway therein, and a hinged door for closing said doorway; a recess in the hinged edge of said door, a collapsible ladder comprising a stile fixed in said recess, a movable stile, and rungs having their opposite ends pivotally attached, respectively, to said stiles so that said movable stile and said rungs are extensible within said doorway when the door is open or collapsible to a position within said recess.

3. In a railway car having a doorway and a door hinged along one side edge to one side of said doorway for closing said doorway; a notch in the hinged edge of said door, a collapsible ladder comprising rungs pivotall mounted at one end upon a stile secured within said notch of said door and pivotally mounted at the other 6 end upon a movable stile, said movable stile and rungs being constructed and arranged so as to be extensible within said doorway when the door is open, or collapsible within said notch.

GUSTAV P. TORCBURN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 278,301 Welsh May 22, 1883 281,235 Bingaman July 17, 1883 756,512 Marsh Apr. 5, 1904 779,463 Bras Jan. 10, 1905 830,678 Senn Sept. 11, 1906 1,215,455 Wine Feb. 13, 1917 1,280,456 Harmon Oct. 1, 1918 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 23,853/29 Australia Nov. 27,1930

17,554/34 Australia June 10, 1935 

